Suffix Number Plates 1963-1983

There was a car registration system previous to 1963 before the suffix number plates system was introduced, but we will only be covering the subject from 1963. Needless to say pre-63 plates are dateless, rare and expensive.

In 1963, a year related system was introduced to replace the quickly running out old system.

Known as the suffix system, this classic number plate system ran from 1963 to 1983, where it was then replaced by the prefix system. Originally running from 1st January, but latter changed to August in 1967, as car retailers found buyers waiting for the new year to get a new car, causing peaks and troughs in sales.

Number Plate Identification And Format

The first 3 letters are for the regional identity
Unfortunately I’m unable to find sufficient data for the regions.

The following 1-3 numbers are purely random
This could be any number from 1-999.

The last letter is the year identifier
Starting with an ‘A’ suffix in January 1963 and ending in a ‘Y’ suffix in July 1983. Note there are no I, O, Q, U or Z letters used. For a complete list of suffix and dates See below.

Note: Due to suffix number plates being age related, they can only be placed on cars of the appropriate age or newer. You cannot place a newer number plate on an older car for obvious reasons.

Number Plate Characters
All number plates fitted between 1973 – 1983 follow the same as pre 1st September 2001 number plates and must display characters that meet the dimensions shown in one of the two groups below:

Group 1

Group 2

Height

89mm

79mm

Width (except for number ‘1′)

64mm

57mm

Stroke

16mm

14mm

Space Between characters

13mm

11mm

Space Between groups

38mm

33mm

Side margins ( minimum )

13mm

11mm

Space between vertical lines

19mm

19mm

Number plates before January 1973 must display characters that meet the dimensions shown in one of the two groups below:

Group 1

Group 2

Height

89mm

79mm

Width (except for number ‘1′)

64mm

57mm

Stroke

16mm

14mm

Space Between characters

13mm

11mm

Space Between groups

38mm

33mm

Side margins

25mm

11mm

Top & bottom margins

13mm

11mm

Additional notes
All vehicles manufactured after January 1973 must display number plates of reflex-reflecting material, white at the front and yellow at the rear, the characters must be black.

Traditional number plates fitted to vehicles manufactured before 1 January 1973 are not required to display the mandatory character font, but the characters must be easy to read. They may also display traditional style “black and white” plates i.e. white, silver or grey characters on a black plate.